A young man with ruddy hair and a scruffy red beard approaches the entrance to what appears to be a nondescript cavern, nearly invisible in the dim starlight night. His years of preparation and months of travel through the Hoenn region have led him to the entrance to this cave, hidden away among the wilds of the region. At his side is a Kecleon, who appears rather enthusiastic to have made this discovery.

"We made it, buddy," the boy acknowledges, patting the Color Swap Pokémon on the head, "Let's get going."

The duo proceed through the darkened entrance, the little light provided by the sky above soon fading as they enter. Once the darkness makes it too difficult to navigate, the young man gives orders to his Pokémon, whose red stripe suddenly lights up. In response to the light, a number of gems embedded in the surfaces of the cave begin to glitter.

"This is it," the young man affirms.

The two trek through the tunnels, which wind and twist as they descend. The gems grow denser as they go deeper into the cave, and before long, the ceiling mimics the resplendence of the night sky. After what seemed like hours and a descent through 99 floors, the pair reach a grand chamber, whose ceiling is dotted with sparkling gems in the form of mineral constellations.

Upon arrival, the trainer's Kecleon grows rather excited, clearly anticipating a battle ahead.

"Sorry, buddy, you'll have to sit this one out," he tells the Pokémon, who sags a little. The trainer instead reaches for his belt, retrieving a gray ball with blue nodes. He expands the ball and chucks it forward. After a brief flash, a hulking, armored creature, standing a full foot over her trainer, materializes. Despite her imposing look, she stays quite calm and composed. A pendant dangles around her neck, a small stone set into a silver piece.

"Hm, well, I suppose the only thing left is the song..."

The young man retrieves another Poké Ball, this one pink with subtle wisps of blue. From this ball, a delicate creature emerges, her pink coat glistening in the light.

"Okay, Fetra. Just like we practiced."

The Clefable sings a crooning song, the pure and clear notes echoing through the cavern.

"A challenger? I suppose I had best fortify my Iron Defence, then perhaps a Water Pulse will do."

Clefable's crooning slowly comes to an end, the ephemeral tones having had a distinct effect on the surroundings. The crystals surrounding the cavern begin to glow with a pulsing light, their crystalline structures reacting in some manner to the sounds which had just reverberated through them. Gradually, the ghostly light shifting from them comes to a crescendo, and the entire area is bathed briefly in a blinding white light. Averting their gaze, Fetra and her trainer retreat to a safer distance, and as their eyesight returned to them, the sight before them was astonishing. Each of the crystals were shining with a virulent force, and the mythical Pokemon Jirachi was left hanging in the air. The aura of power radiating from the being was intense despite the half sleeping condition it was in, but that was soon to change. Where Fetra's song once hung gently in the air, now a shearing of rock and metal filled the cavern. The sounds were enough to wake Jirachi fully from it's slumber, and the small pixie blinks with shock as Lustre makes herself fully known. Thrusting her arms apart, she shrieks with a roar which shakes the cavern down to it's very foundations, and Jirachi becomes much more serious in this moment. It was David versus Goliath, and neither had any intention of being the one to succumb.

Not one to waste any time, Jirachi glares at its opponent through narrowed eyes, wanting to fortify its defensive properties before making an offensive push. The three talismans hanging from its head glow with a fine silver aura which soon spreads across the entire body of Jirachi, a faint grin coming across its face as it finds itself bolstered. With a demure shout, it turns back towards Lustre, and its grin falters. The Aggron was consumed by a whining aura of intense white light, the construct folding together to form a sphere around the body of Lustre. With an unbecoming roar, the air is split in two, cracks appearing across the surface of the orb surrounding the Aggron. Rainbow light spills from within before it shatters, revealing Lustre in a new form. With a gruff grunt of acknowledgement to her prey, the behemoth takes notes from her foe. Hunkering down, she focuses on her carapace, channeling a familiar silver light across the surface. As she finally rumbles into position, it is evident both powerhouses had strengthened their positions for the battle to come.

Knowing that ultimately, Lustre would not be felled by a display of defensive bedazzlement, Jirachi shifts through the air nimbly, spreading its arms wide as it moves. A faint cry builds within its throat as mystic energies come together, and a small speck of light light flickers into existence before it. Weak at first, the light soon takes hold, and a whirling orb stands before Jirachi. Waves dart across the surface of the construct, and Lustre huffs, well aware that this could be much more dangerous than it first appeared. With a shout, Jirachi flings the sphere through the air, chuckling as it bursts over the face of Lustre to shower the Aggron, but Goliath barely flinches. With another petrifying roar, the carapace of the Aggron becomes dyed in a perfect black, roiling energies bubbling to the surface to reveal the true hue of her character. Raising a vicious looking arm, Lustre brings it swinging through the air, projecting wave upon wave of the condensed evil forth. Jirachi can do little but grimace as the foul energies batter against his body, his pained groans doing little to deter the assault.

From his vantage, the trainer surveys the rounds happening. Lustre would likely be able to use one more Dark Pulse, and it was clear that the Aggron had a slight lead. With the battle still in it's infancy, both Pokemon were still clearly quite peppy to boot.

"I'd like to see it copy a Cubic Light Screen. I'll back away as I set that up and then I think a Charge Beam will do."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jerichi

Dark Pulse Earth Power

With formalities having been exchanged, the two Pokemon face off against one another, Jirachi now having fully woken from it's slumber. The pair lock eyes, the advantage Lustre held over her foe clear in her leer. Frowning, Jirachi looks to remedy this somewhat, the numerous charms dangling from it's head abruptly becoming dyed in a pulsing pink energy. With a dull cry, the Psychic type allows a flickering construct to begin forming around it's body, the distinct cubic shape thrumming with immense power. As it finally locks into the plane of existence, Lustre issues a guttural hiss of disdain, the Aggron taking a much more direct approach to the problem at hand. Her shearing cries shake the very foundation of the surroundings as her entire being becomes consumed by a roiling black aura. Within moments her body is covered, her gaping maw chuckling a metallic tone. This rises into a threatening roar as pulse upon pulse of energy bursts forth from her body, racking over the body of Jirachi - though not before being sapped somewhat by the defensive barrier hanging around the pixie.

Recoiling from the blow, the sting of it clear upon Jirachi's face, the wish granter takes a moment to recollect itself. Shaking it's head, the small being wears a grin as power begins to gather for it's next attack. Spreading arms wide, a faint crackling aura begins to pulsate around it's form, gathering into a small sphere just before the mouth of the pixie. With a demure cry, Jirachi sends a bolting lance forth into the body of Lustre, the slight blow barely making the Aggron even take notice - though it becomes painfully evident afterwards that she may have to exervise caution in the future. The air around Jirachi distorts as energy sinks into his being, empowering him even further beyond his natural abilities, and Lustre grunts as she hunkers down to take the fight more seriously. Raising her right arm high into the air, she cloaks the carapace covered limb in a thrumming aura of dark brown energy, roaring as she hammers it into the ground. In less than a heartbeat a thickened plume of energy erupts from beneath Jirachi, encompassing it's body within a maelstrom of pain - but once again being buffered somewhat by the barrier surrounding it.

Looking on from safety, the trainer notes mentally that was the last of Lustre's Dark energy. Thankfully, the Aggron had seized a clear lead, with Jirachi already looking pretty beaten up. There was still a ways to go though - and luckily, both Pokemon seemed happy to plug on.

"If my opponent wants to see power, I guess I'll oblige with a Full Charge Hyper Beam. Then I'll rejuvenate myself a bit with a Wish."

Small eyes now burning with a determination to see the interloper who had dared to rouse it from slumber, Jirachi shrugs its body, working some of the numbing pain out of its joints. Lustre sees no reason to allow her foe the time to recover in any capacity. Her mouth open wide, the Aggron unleashes a curdling cry as she launches into yet another assault, raising her right arm high above her head. Despite her immense size, she moves swiftly - albeit awkwardly - and when her hammering strike comes down on Jirachi, the small Psychic type realises with a sickening twist that this blow was about much more than simple hurt. The barrier surrounding the legendary being shatters into pieces, leaving Jirachi much more vulnerable. Jirachi does not enjoy this feeling. Shrieking loudly, the small legend begins to tremble with an immense, terrifying power. Condensing rapidly, a flickering orange sphere hangs in the air before the pixie, and Lustre has nowhere to escape to. A flash of light engulfs the entire cavern, and Lustre's groans of pain can be barely heard above the intense, whining thrum of energy echoing through the air.

As the dust slowly clears, Lustre thrusts her arms apart to dispel the rest of the haze hanging around her, chips of the cavern having been cracked onto her sturdy carapace. A distinct grunt of irritation embodies the pain she had just been subjected to, but her revenge was near enough instant. Her maw flared to life as embers began to spew onto the surrounding ground, each one petering out but spelling a nasty intent for Jirachi. Hissing fury, Lustre opens her mouth wide to accommodate a searing rush of flame, the bright effigy rushing through the air to smash into the petite body of Jirachi. Knocked back by the sheer intensity of the flames, the wish maker sobs softly as it prays to those it holds dear - body becoming rapidly reinvigorated as a consequence, much to the chagrin of Lustre.

Lustre maintained her strong lead in the eyes of her trainer, with Jirachi looking decidedly more scuffed up than the Aggron. Jirachi might not hang on for much longer, but the Psychic type is looking much fresher than Lustre, who is clearly flagging somewhat.